Students Entering Kindergarten
Students entering Kindergarten in the Haledon Public School in September are required to participate in a school screening usually offered in the Spring before they begin school. The results of this screening are one of the measures used to help sort the students into appropriate classrooms. Please find questions and answers to the most commonly asked questions about the screening below...
My child has a summer birthday and I am concerned that they are not ready for Kindergarten. Will this screening tell me if my child is ready for Kindergarten?
No. This is a screening, not a readiness assessment. The best person to discuss your child's readiness for Kindergarten is your child's pre-school teacher and your pediatrician.
What screening tool is used?
The DIAL-R is the developmental screening used by the Haledon Public School. It is designed to measure the most fundamental or basic concepts that are acquired by young children.
What areas does the screening examine?
The DIAL -R examines three major areas as follows:
Motor: Catching, jumping, hopping, skipping, building, thumb and finger motor skills, cutting, copying and name writing.
Concepts: Identification of body parts, colors, rapid color naming, counting, positions, concepts (big/little), and shapes
Language: Personal data, articulation, objects and actions, letters and sounds, rhyming and I spy, problem-solving, and intelligibility.
Does the screening examine any other areas?
Yes. The screening operators take behavioral notes; for example, how willing the child is to separate from the parent/caregiver. These observations may be used to explain individual variations in the way children approach the tasks given in the screening.
Operators also note if the child has English as a second language or if they exhibit speech patterns that may need to be examined more closely.
Does my child need to wear anything special for the screening?
Yes. Each child should wear loose, comfortable clothing. They should wear sneakers because they will be asked to hop and jump; this is difficult to do in other types of footwear.
What happens when my child comes to be screened?
The adults sign in and wait with their child until one of the screening operators comes to get the child. Children are usually taken in groups of four. The children go to a room in the school building where staff members are conducting the assessment. Each child works with each staff member for approximately 15 minutes. After about one hour the children are then returned to the parent/caregiver.
How long will the screening take?
The screening takes approximately one hour. Parents are required to remain in the school to wait for their children.
Who are the Staff Members?
They are the Haledon Public School's Kindergarten and ESL teachers and Speech Therapists.
What if I don't want my child tested?
You would send a letter to the school indicating you want to opt-out and do not want your child tested.
When will I hear the results of the screening?
We hope to send the results of the screening home by US mail before the end of the school year.